' Nch. i. 4. So Mauriciiis the emperor justified God when lie saw his wife and chil- dren butchcrcil hefore his eyes by the traitor Pliocas, and knew that liim.sclf should soon after be stewed in his own broth, cried out, Just art thou, 0 Lord, and just arc all thy judgments! - (incry, 'law'? — G.
ISA. XLII. 24, 25.] THE LATE FIERY DISPENSATIO^T. 219
himself; nor (4.) He cannot look upon iniquity and not loathe it; he cannot behold iniquity and approve of it or delight in it. God has a sovereignty over all your persons and concernments in this world, and therefore he may do with you and all that is yours as he pleaseth. Upon this account you ought to say, The Lord is righteous, though he hath laid your habitations desolate, and burned up your houses before your eyes. It is true, God has dealt severely with London ; but he might have dealt more severely with it, Lam. iii. 22. He might have burnt up every house, and he might have consumed every inhabitant in London's flames. He might have made good that sad word upon them, ' They shall go from one lire, and another fire shall devour them,' Ezek. xv. 7. The citizens of London may say with good Ezra, God hath punished us less than our iniquities deserve ; and therefore it highly concerns them to say, ' The Lord is righteous.' All that God doth is good. You know what Hezekiah said : 2 Kings xx. 19, ' Good is the word of the Lord.' This was a hard word, a sad word, that all his treasure should be carried into Babylon, and his sons also, and made servants there, and yet he saith, ' Good is the word of the Lord.' Whatever God doth is good. God, in that he is good, saith one — Luther in Psalm cxx. — can give nothing, do nothing, but that which is good ; others do frequently, he cannot possibly. Upon this account also it concerns us to say. The Lord is righteous, though our city be laid desolate. It is better to be under a fiery rod, than to be wallowing in the mire of sin.i It is better that London should be laid desolate, than that God should say, England, farewell. That is a Chris- tian worth gold who can seriously, heartily, and habitually say, The Lord is righteous, though all our pleasant things are laid desolate.
Ohjec. I would say, The Lord is righteous ; but by this fiery dis- pensation I am turned out of house and home.
Now, in answer to this objection, give me leave to inquire : —
[1.] First, Whether Tjour house was dedicated to the Lord bi/ fast- ing and prayer or not P Deut. xx. 5. If it were only dedicated to the service of sin, Satan, or the world, no wonder if the Lord has turned it into a heap. But,
[2.] Secondly, Give me leave to inquire, Whether you had set up Christ and holiness and holy orders in your house or no ? See Ps. ci. Did you in good earnest resolve witli Joshua, ' That you and your house would serve the Lord,' Joshua xxiv. 15. If not, no wonder if the Lord has laid your habitations desolate. But,
[3.] Thirdly, Give me leave to inquire. Whether you did labour and endeavour to the utmost of what you were able, that Christ might have a church in your house or no f Col. iv. 15, ' Salute the brethren which are in Laodicea, and Nymphas, and the church which is in his house'; that is, saith Dr Hammond, which meets together in his house. 1 Cor. xvi. 19, ' The churches of Asia salute you. Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the Lord, with the church that is in their house.' Phil. 2, ' And to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus our fellow-soldier, and to the church in thy house.'- Philemon's
^ See more of this in my ' Mute Christian.' [Vol. I. as before. — G.] ^ Sec Dr Hammond on this scripture. Vide Bishop Dav[enant] Cotton, Bcza, Scul- tctus, Ambrose, &c.
220 London's lamentations on [Isa. XLII. 24, 25.
house was a public meeting-house, where the faithful had their assem- blies ; and so continued for many years after, as Theodoret and others witnesscth. Some understand this last scripture of the churcli which kept IJK'ir assemblies in Philemon's house. Others understand it of his household, which was as a little church in his house: Rom. xvi. 5, ' Likewise greet the church that is in their house.' Chrysostom by the church in their house understands their Christian family, who, saith he, were so godly, as to make their whole house the church. Origen interpreteth it of the faithful and ready ministry of these servants of the Lord, in entertaining of the saints in their house. Theoi^hylact thinketh it to be called the church in their house, because the faithful were entertained there. But beside this, it seemeth that their house was a place for the saints to assemble in ; there the con- gregation used to come together, [Martyr.] The last thing in their praise was, that they had a churcli in their house ; either for that their family, for their godly order observed in it, seemed to be a church, or else for the faithful gathered together in their house to celebrate their assemblies ; for they might not have in most places the free use of their Christian religion, through the malice of the Jews on the one hand, and the rage of the Gentiles on the other hand. Consult Acts xiii. and xiv., [Wilson.] In this great city of Rome there were divers assemblies of believers, which were held in some private men's houses, where they might meet safest — the state then, and some hundred years after, not permitting them any public temples or audi- tories to meet in, as our English Annotators observe upon the place. In each particular family last cited, there was a church of Christ. Now have you burnt citizens made it your business to erect a church of Christ in your particular families ? if so, well it is with you, though you have lost all. If not, do not wonder that God has laid your houses desolate. Adam had a church in his house, so had Abraham, and Jacob, and Joshua, and David, and Cornelius. Well governed families may in some sense be well reputed churches. The house of George, Prince of Anhalt, for the good orders therein observed, is said to have been, Ecclcsia, academia, curia. Ah London, London! it may be there might have been more houses standing within thy walls than now there is, if every particular house had been as a particular church to Christ. As for such houses where there were no exercises of religion ; as for such houses where idleness, cheating, lying, cursing, swearing, slandering, gaming, drunkenness, uncleanness, and riotous- ness were rampant, they were rather the devil's chapel than Christ's churcli ; and therefore it was just with God to lay such habitations desolate. But,